Rent-A-Mate: Masked Intentions

Touchy

April

April woke up early, the sun was just starting to lighten up the sky. She looked around the bedroom for her keys. She didn't see them anywhere. They had to be here, she thought. She had already rummaged through Mike's jeans in the bathroom after her first pass in the bedroom. They were no where to be seen, she chewed on her lip trying to think of where they may be.

After finally conceding that they were not in the bedroom, she quietly made her way into the other room. She quickly scanned the room and saw a parking stub from the valet on one of the end tables. Right next to where a sleeping, snoring, and very much naked Mike lay sprawled on the couch.

Quietly tip toeing across the room, she carefully grabbed the ticket, avoiding making any noise. She couldn't help herself from looking, who wouldn't appreciate a body like his. Biting her bottom lip to keep herself from making any noise as her eyes traveled over his body. He had a very broad and muscled back, all tan and smooth. The towel he had last night was barely covering his very nice rear. Yet as much as she wanted to stay and look some more, she had to get out before he woke up.

Pocketing the ticket stub, April went to the door and stepped out, slowly closing the door behind her. She walked down the hallway and pressed the call button for the elevator. She didn't know if she should be sorry or angry at him. Last night had been a mistake. She should have went back to bed and let him deal with his problems on his own. Instead she'd been a fool and gone to him.

She stepped into the elevator as soon as the doors opened and pressed the button for the first floor. Leaning against the back of the elevator, she closed her eyes, thinking back at what had happened. She could still feel Mike's mouth on hers, the hunger behind them. The way his body felt against hers and his arousal beneath the towel. Her pulse accelerated just thinking about it. Her skin heated just as it had done last night, she could just imagine what they could have done had she not stopped him.

April mentally shook her head, she needed to stop, she shouldn't be getting attached to him so quickly. She wasn't, she told herself. Yes, he was good looking and charming when he wanted to be but he had also been a bit arrogant when she first met him. And she couldn't forget that he was Connor's "friend" and that alone meant trouble.

April walked off the elevator and headed out the doors. What she needed was some time to leave the city and have a good run, but that was not an option today. No, today was the night of the ball and she needed to get a few more errands done.

She wished she could call up Kiera and talk to her, tell her all about her night and her mixed feelings for Mike. Kiera was her best friend and cousin, yet now that she needed her most, she was out of town and unavailable. She had gone off to a business trip with her fiancé, Aaron. Personally, April disliked him and his detached relationship with her cousin. Yet, hard as she tried, Kiera loves him and keeps hoping he will change. She was done trying to help her cousin change her mind, if she couldn't see that he wasn't the one, what else could she do.

Letting out a long sigh, April turned as her car came around the the bend to the entrance of the hotel. The valet smiled at her as he held the door open for her to get in. She drove away from the hotel and headed towards Mary's shop to pick up her mask. Her mask would be identical to her parents, a sign that she belonged to the Harper family, and currently unmated. Her brothers would resemble hers but would be intertwined with his wife's family design.

The Ball was a benefit dinner to help support the research of shifter diseases and illnesses. There were so many breeds of shifters around the world and every type had their own sets of illnesses. The majority of shifters had a great immunity system but there were those unfortunate few that lacked the immunity gene. Shifters without this gene suffered greatly, as there were few to no cures or treatments available to them. Benefit dinners like this one was a great way to unite all shifters in a common goal.